Data / Rankings / Civilian labor force / Cities in Illinois

Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force

Chicago, IL had the highest civilian labor force of 104 cities in 2022, at 1.45 million. East St. Louis, IL had the lowest, at 6,722. The median was 19,020. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest1,446,158Chicago, IL
Lowest6,722East St. Louis, IL
Median19,020104 cities

Top 40 cities, 2022

Chicago, IL: 1,446,158 personsChicago, IL1,446,158Aurora, IL: 96,262 personsAurora, IL96,262Naperville, IL: 79,972 personsNaperville, IL79,972Joliet, IL: 79,767 personsJoliet, IL79,767Rockford, IL: 66,149 personsRockford, IL66,149Elgin, IL: 58,993 personsElgin, IL58,993Springfield, IL: 54,223 personsSpringfield, IL54,223Peoria, IL: 51,280 personsPeoria, IL51,280Champaign, IL: 46,502 personsChampaign, IL46,502Waukegan, IL: 45,951 personsWaukegan, IL45,951Bloomington, IL: 42,458 personsBloomington, IL42,458Bolingbrook, IL: 41,945 personsBolingbrook, IL41,945Schaumburg, IL: 41,563 personsSchaumburg, IL41,563Cicero, IL: 41,064 personsCicero, IL41,064Arlington Heights, IL: 40,303 personsArlington Heights, IL40,303Evanston, IL: 39,171 personsEvanston, IL39,171Palatine, IL: 37,813 personsPalatine, IL37,813Skokie, IL: 32,471 personsSkokie, IL32,471Des Plaines, IL: 31,780 personsDes Plaines, IL31,780Berwyn, IL: 30,065 personsBerwyn, IL30,065Decatur, IL: 29,942 personsDecatur, IL29,942Mount Prospect, IL: 29,735 personsMount Prospect, IL29,735Orland Park, IL: 29,143 personsOrland Park, IL29,143Tinley Park, IL: 29,127 personsTinley Park, IL29,127Oak Park, IL: 28,974 personsOak Park, IL28,974Normal, IL: 28,469 personsNormal, IL28,469Hoffman Estates, IL: 28,397 personsHoffman Estates, IL28,397Oak Lawn, IL: 28,232 personsOak Lawn, IL28,232Wheaton, IL: 27,751 personsWheaton, IL27,751Downers Grove, IL: 26,919 personsDowners Grove, IL26,919Lombard, IL: 25,425 personsLombard, IL25,425Plainfield, IL: 24,830 personsPlainfield, IL24,830Romeoville, IL: 24,031 personsRomeoville, IL24,031Bartlett, IL: 23,718 personsBartlett, IL23,718Glenview, IL: 23,433 personsGlenview, IL23,433Elmhurst, IL: 23,311 personsElmhurst, IL23,311Buffalo Grove, IL: 23,309 personsBuffalo Grove, IL23,309Crystal Lake, IL: 22,721 personsCrystal Lake, IL22,721Wheeling, IL: 22,321 personsWheeling, IL22,321Carol Stream, IL: 22,234 personsCarol Stream, IL22,234Chicago, IL: 1,446,158 personsChicago, IL1,446,158Aurora, IL: 96,262 personsAurora, IL96,262Naperville, IL: 79,972 personsNaperville, IL79,972Joliet, IL: 79,767 personsJoliet, IL79,767Rockford, IL: 66,149 personsRockford, IL66,149Elgin, IL: 58,993 personsElgin, IL58,993Springfield, IL: 54,223 personsSpringfield, IL54,223Peoria, IL: 51,280 personsPeoria, IL51,280Champaign, IL: 46,502 personsChampaign, IL46,502Waukegan, IL: 45,951 personsWaukegan, IL45,951Bloomington, IL: 42,458 personsBloomington, IL42,458Bolingbrook, IL: 41,945 personsBolingbrook, IL41,945Schaumburg, IL: 41,563 personsSchaumburg, IL41,563Cicero, IL: 41,064 personsCicero, IL41,064Arlington Heights, IL: 40,303 personsArlington Heights, IL40,303Evanston, IL: 39,171 personsEvanston, IL39,171Palatine, IL: 37,813 personsPalatine, IL37,813Skokie, IL: 32,471 personsSkokie, IL32,471Des Plaines, IL: 31,780 personsDes Plaines, IL31,780Berwyn, IL: 30,065 personsBerwyn, IL30,065Decatur, IL: 29,942 personsDecatur, IL29,942Mount Prospect, IL: 29,735 personsMount Prospect, IL29,735Orland Park, IL: 29,143 personsOrland Park, IL29,143Tinley Park, IL: 29,127 personsTinley Park, IL29,127Oak Park, IL: 28,974 personsOak Park, IL28,974Normal, IL: 28,469 personsNormal, IL28,469Hoffman Estates, IL: 28,397 personsHoffman Estates, IL28,397Oak Lawn, IL: 28,232 personsOak Lawn, IL28,232Wheaton, IL: 27,751 personsWheaton, IL27,751Downers Grove, IL: 26,919 personsDowners Grove, IL26,919Lombard, IL: 25,425 personsLombard, IL25,425Plainfield, IL: 24,830 personsPlainfield, IL24,830Romeoville, IL: 24,031 personsRomeoville, IL24,031Bartlett, IL: 23,718 personsBartlett, IL23,718Glenview, IL: 23,433 personsGlenview, IL23,433Elmhurst, IL: 23,311 personsElmhurst, IL23,311Buffalo Grove, IL: 23,309 personsBuffalo Grove, IL23,309Crystal Lake, IL: 22,721 personsCrystal Lake, IL22,721Wheeling, IL: 22,321 personsWheeling, IL22,321Carol Stream, IL: 22,234 personsCarol Stream, IL22,234
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2022
persons		Change on 2021
1Chicago, IL1,446,158+2.2%
2Aurora, IL96,262+2.3%
3Naperville, IL79,972+5.2%
4Joliet, IL79,767+3.4%
5Rockford, IL66,149-1.9%
6Elgin, IL58,993+1.5%
7Springfield, IL54,223+0.2%
8Peoria, IL51,280-1.6%
9Champaign, IL46,502+0.9%
10Waukegan, IL45,951-1.5%
11Bloomington, IL42,458+3.3%
12Bolingbrook, IL41,945+4.8%
13Schaumburg, IL41,563+3.2%
14Cicero, IL41,064+2.6%
15Arlington Heights, IL40,303+3.7%
16Evanston, IL39,171+3.2%
17Palatine, IL37,813+3.2%
18Skokie, IL32,471+2.4%
19Des Plaines, IL31,780+2.9%
20Berwyn, IL30,065+2.1%
21Decatur, IL29,942-2.3%
22Mount Prospect, IL29,735+3.4%
23Orland Park, IL29,143+3.7%
24Tinley Park, IL29,127+3.4%
25Oak Park, IL28,974+3%
26Normal, IL28,469+3.8%
27Hoffman Estates, IL28,397+3%
28Oak Lawn, IL28,232+2.8%
29Wheaton, IL27,751+4.5%
30Downers Grove, IL26,919+4.1%
31Lombard, IL25,425+4.5%
32Plainfield, IL24,830+6.2%
33Romeoville, IL24,031+3.2%
34Bartlett, IL23,718+3.7%
35Glenview, IL23,433+3.6%
36Elmhurst, IL23,311+4.9%
37Buffalo Grove, IL23,309+1.1%
38Crystal Lake, IL22,721+5.1%
39Wheeling, IL22,321+3%
40Carol Stream, IL22,234+3.8%
41Streamwood, IL21,768+2.6%
42Urbana, IL20,819+0.7%
43Belleville, IL20,575-2.5%
44Addison, IL20,440+4%
45DeKalb, IL20,412+0.4%
46Moline, IL20,395-0.9%
47Carpentersville, IL20,127+0.7%
48Park Ridge, IL19,963+3.5%
49Quincy, IL19,662-0.6%
50Woodridge, IL19,510+3.8%
51Hanover Park, IL19,281+3.4%
52Oswego, IL19,258+3.5%
53Glendale Heights, IL18,782+3%
54St. Charles, IL18,241+1.4%
55Algonquin, IL17,766+3.8%
56Mundelein, IL17,592+0.2%
57Elk Grove Village, IL17,292+2.8%
58Rock Island, IL17,008-1.2%
59Northbrook, IL16,987+3.7%
60Calumet City, IL16,924-0.8%
61Gurnee, IL16,726-0.7%
62McHenry, IL16,226+7.2%
63Lake in the Hills, IL16,068+3.6%
64O'Fallon, IL15,3030%
65Lockport, IL15,251+4.6%
66Oak Forest, IL14,879+2.9%
67New Lenox, IL14,876+5.5%
68Highland Park, IL14,827+0.3%
69Pekin, IL14,586-0.2%
70Round Lake Beach, IL14,549-0.9%
71Woodstock, IL14,535+4.5%
72Lansing, IL14,270+0.8%
73Vernon Hills, IL14,250-0%
74Niles, IL14,190+2.5%
75Batavia, IL14,161+1.4%
76Glen Ellyn, IL14,132+4.3%
77Burbank, IL14,072+2.1%
78West Chicago, IL13,813+4.4%
79Edwardsville, IL13,213+0.6%
80Belvidere, IL13,209-0.4%
81Collinsville, IL13,091-0.8%
82Yorkville, IL12,990+6.7%
83Granite City, IL12,646-0.7%
84Westmont, IL12,557+3.5%
85Melrose Park, IL12,483+2.9%
86Zion, IL12,425-2.4%
87Wilmette, IL12,364+3.6%
88Morton Grove, IL12,354+2.9%
89Huntley, IL12,233+5.1%
90Elmwood Park, IL12,223+2.2%
91Homer Glen, IL12,117+4.8%
92Alton, IL12,062-1.7%
93Chicago Heights, IL11,537-0.6%
94Galesburg, IL11,240-3.6%
95Danville, IL11,173-0.7%
96Freeport, IL10,620-1.4%
97Park Forest, IL10,433-0.1%
98Kankakee, IL10,061-2.8%
99Maywood, IL10,014-0.3%
100Carbondale, IL10,007-0.9%
101North Chicago, IL9,918-1.4%
102Dolton, IL9,346-2.4%
103Harvey, IL8,608-1.6%
104East St. Louis, IL6,722-5.9%

Other periods

About this ranking

Employed plus unemployed residents, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. Counts people where they live, not jobs: for wage and salary jobs by state use oews_employment. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average (Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_illinois_by_2022,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force, 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/illinois-cities?period=2022.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in Illinois by civilian labor force using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest civilian labor force?

Chicago, IL, with 1.45 million in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest civilian labor force?

East St. Louis, IL, with 6,722 in 2022.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Civilian labor force: other rankings

Cities in Illinois: more rankings